Family Matters
by Abbie Bright
What does it mean to send?
On 6th October 2019, St Thomas’ Newcastle had their official launch day service. A big party. A celebration of all that God had already done to prepare the way for this amazing Church plant to exist, and a celebration of all the ways He is going to use this Church to bring His Kingdom to Earth. I had two responsibilities: setting off my confetti cannons at the correct choreographed moment, and supporting my Church as we go on this new adventure together.
While it feels like I have been a member of the Belfrey in York for a lifetime, it has actually only been two and a half years. When I joined the Church, I knew Ben and Ellie were waiting for the right time to plant and I’ve been able to see the whole journey so far; discovering God was sending them to Newcastle, the struggle to find a building, the team starting to form and relocate their lives, the prophetic confirmations from people in our community, the appointments of staff team, right through to the start of the Church and launch day. It was so exciting. I’ve never experienced a Church do something like this before and even within the world of Church planting, the scale of the St Thomas’ plant is rare. I think it is an experience that has marked The Belfrey for many years to come.
One Sunday, when Ben was updating the Church family about the plans for Newcastle, he encouraged us each to ask God if we were called to go. ‘Even if you’ve lived here your whole life, even if you have a family that is settled here, even if you’re committed to more years of university, ask Him.’ Ben’s reasoning behind this was that a ‘no’ to Newcastle makes the ‘yes’ to York stronger than it was before. He could not have been more correct. Even in these short few months, since launch day, The Belfrey has grown as a community and a family. More than I’ve seen before, we are fulfilling our call to be a team on mission to reach the people of our city with the good news of Jesus. Releasing so many people to go and be a part of St Thomas’ has allowed more people to step up in roles of serving: our youth and children’s, worship and student teams look so different than they did a year ago. People are stepping up, allowing God to shape them, grow them and use them to do the mission he has given our Church and it’s amazing to see.
As I’m sure you know, things that are worth doing are rarely easy to do, and this journey has been no different. Once the plant was announced, in our humanity and our sin, some tensions began to surface within our community. I can't say that these tensions exist throughout the whole Church, but I can speak from what I have experienced within some circles of people. I can’t explain to you where they stemmed from: for some, it may be jealousy, others may be fearing starting a new life in a new place, some perhaps hurt that they were not asked to go. A dialogue of ‘us’ and ‘them’ began to develop long before October. Assumptions about who would definitely go and who would definitely stay didn’t create an atmosphere where people could easily seek God’s will. Since the launch day, this sentiment continued; there is gossip in one direction, and miscommunication in the other, and it has hurt people. When we allow the tensions to grow, we let the enemy have a foothold. It breeds division, where God wants to unite us. It creates insecurities that distract us from who God tells us we are. And it makes us forget what Church is. “Though we are many, we are one body, because we all share in one flesh”. Jesus brings us, broken people, together. He calls us beloved, he calls us children and we get to sit side by side at the table as one family. We need to remember what an honour that is and actively seek to love one another as Christ loves us.
This family thing has probably been what I have personally struggled with the most in all of this. If you go onto the St Thomas’ website and take a look at the staff team, you will see a page full of people I love, who have taught me, mentored me and shaped me to be who I am. The past few months have been great - God is doing amazing stuff both here in York and up the road - but it has also been really challenging and, a lot more often than I care to admit, I mourn what my life looked like before the summer. I’ve been forced out of my comfort zone, the people who were my anchors at Church on a Sunday and in my day to day life are not there in the same way anymore and I had to reestablish Jesus as my rock and my safe place. God has also helped me realise how jealous I was of the new and exciting adventure that so many of my friends were embarking on and I just wanted to be a part of it. I wanted God to use me. I wanted God to use ME. Far from a noble desire to help further the Kingdom, I was acting prideful. I wasn’t properly supporting my loved ones, because I wanted to be the one that God used. I wanted it to be me doing the exciting thing with God. I was putting God in a box and not trusting that he had me right where he needs me. New is exciting. Old is exciting. Everything is exciting when you’re following Jesus. There is no greater adventure than being his disciple and following where He leads. I had forgotten that truth, but the Good Shepherd does not leave anyone behind. I am more convinced than ever that York is where God needs me to be right now. And that is very, very exciting.
Now here we are, almost two months into the new year; the initial growing pains have subsided, any tensions that existed within our Church family are starting to be forgotten, the St Thomas’ team are settled in their new city and their Church is thriving, The Belfrey have experienced God’s provision through their sending and the Church is thriving. Church planting is a difficult thing to do and this blog series has shown just the tip of the iceberg of all the mountain top and valley moments. But I am so grateful to have been and continue to be a part of it. I love seeing my friends step out in their God-given callings. I love hearing and experiencing all that God is doing in our region. And I love that every time I go and visit Newcastle, I feel so at home. Because home isn’t a place, home is people, family and Church.
